Jamestown's burning ordinance goes up in smoke

A crowd of residents turned out Monday night to tell the Jamestown Township Board they didn't want the proposed ordinance to regulate certain types of burning.

Although the board had been in agreement about the ordinance, drafted by planning consultant Linda Anderson, members voted 6 to 1 to not adopt it.

Resident Darryl Shuck said no ordinance was needed, that any disputes could be worked out between neighbors. "What is there about government that wants to micro-manage our lives?" he said. "I ask the board not to pass the ordinance."

Anderson introduced the ordinance last fall in response to questions from residents about burning, and in anticipation that the township will soon grow to 7,500 residents, a level at which the state requires that a township has an ordinance.

Trustee Tim Tacoma proposed the ordinance not be adopted. Tacoma said when he read the ordinance, it seemed clear that open burning was prohibited throughout the township. "Some stipulations are pretty stiff, and even silly,'" he said. He specifically objected to the possibility of charging residents for response from the Fire Department if fires got out of control, and said the provision for inspections amounted to "permission to trespass."He also objected to requiring permits for burning.

Laurie Van Haitsma and her husband, Larry, own farmland in Jamestown. She asked that if the ordinance was adopted, agricultural land be exempted.

Anderson said the ordinance should be read using an accompanying map, which shows zones to which the ordinance applies, primarily to commercial land. "It doesn't apply to agricultural," she said. The Fire Department chief already requires burning permits in certain situations, she noted.

Trustee Norma Shaarda said she appreciated the audience, but that there had been several discussions and notices about the ordinance. "Now that we're down to the last day, we have people here. You're kind of reading it one-sidedly."

After the meeting, several residents said they had not known about the ordinance, or had read only the summary which "seemed benign."

Tacoma said he had not read the full ordinance during discussion, only the summary, which made it seem like "a teddy bear ordinance." Upon reading the full ordinance, however, he did not like it.

Both Tacoma and Clerk Ruth Pruis said the ordinance specifically states that open burning is prohibited in all areas of the township, and while the current board may understand exceptions, future boards may not. "I think it's dangerous to adopt this ordinance this way," Pruis said.